Leaving Dumbledore's office, Charlie made his way toward the Great Hall with a spring in his step.
The moment he pushed open the heavy oak doors, a wave of mouth-watering aromas hit him.
The rich scent of roasted beef mingled with the warm, yeasty aroma of fresh bread, immediately stirring his appetite.
Charlie headed straight for the Hufflepuff table and sat down beside Ernie.
Ernie and Justin were in the middle of a heated discussion, faces flushed with emotion.
"Our next Quidditch match is against Gryffindor," Ernie muttered while stabbing at his mashed potatoes with a fork, his voice filled with obvious anxiety. "Their new Seeker, Harry, is fast and sharp, can we even match that?"
Charlie quietly loaded his plate while keeping his ears open.
Justin swallowed a mouthful of pumpkin juice and shook his head. "Don't sell us short. We've got Cedric."
Across from them, Cedric Diggory gave a warm, reassuring smile. The golden light of the floating candles reflected in his blonde hair, his gray eyes radiating calm confidence.
"Don't worry," he said gently. "I'll give it my all."
Charlie had a decent impression of the upperclassman, Cedric had greeted him on the very first day, and though they hadn't spoken much since, his kind demeanor left a good impression.
Just then, Justin leaned in conspiratorially and lowered his voice.
"Sure, Harry's good, but he's no match for Cedric. Not now."
"Oh? Why not?" asked Ernie.
"He and a few others got caught sneaking around at night by Professor McGonagall. She docked them ninety points!"
"Ninety?!" Ernie nearly dropped his fork.
"Yup! Even the Gryffindors are mad at them now. No way Harry will be able to perform under that kind of pressure."
Charlie chewed his roast beef thoughtfully. Harry had an Invisibility Cloak, didn't he? How did he get caught? Rookie mistake.
Just as Harry came up in conversation, his voice rang out from the Gryffindor table nearby.
"Neville, are you alright?"
Charlie glanced over to see Harry helping Neville Longbottom to his feet. Poor Neville looked pale, his legs stiff, clearly struck by a Leg-Locker Curse.
Not far away stood Draco Malfoy, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle. His platinum hair glinted under the candlelight, and a smug smirk played on his lips. His wand was still raised.
"Malfoy," Harry barked, fury in his voice. "Why'd you curse Neville?"
Malfoy shrugged nonchalantly. "Just wanted to test a new spell. Longbottom made the perfect target, didn't he?"
Hermione hurried over, crouched down to check Neville, then raised her wand.
"Finite Incantatem!"
Neville's legs regained feeling, but his face turned even redder from embarrassment.
"You've gone too far, Malfoy!" Harry clenched his fists, green eyes burning behind his glasses.
"Too far?" Malfoy sneered. "Come on, Potter. You're always hanging around with idiots like him. Tell me, what's it like being the king of the losers?"
Slytherin students snickered around them. Crabbe and Goyle laughed so hard they nearly fell over.
Neville bowed his head, fists clenched tightly.
His friends stood up for him, but he couldn't do anything in return.
That helplessness weighed heavy on his chest.
Charlie set down his knife and fork with a sigh.
He despised bullies, but if Neville kept letting himself be bullied without fighting back, there was no point in interfering. Sooner or later, one had to learn to stand up for oneself.
Hermione tugged at Neville's sleeve. "Come on, let's find Professor McGonagall and report him."
"I don't want to cause more trouble..." Neville's voice trembled.
The nearby Gryffindors all fell silent. You couldn't help someone who refused to help themselves.
"Be brave, Neville," Ron urged, though it didn't help much.
Malfoy laughed louder.
"I must admit, Longbottom, you're different from the usual hot-headed Gryffindors, timid as a mouse."
Neville's fists clenched tighter. Once again, he'd caused his friends to be mocked because of him.
Yes, he was clumsy. As a child, people thought he might be a Squib, so he'd grown up with little confidence.
That lack of confidence carried over into magic, no matter what he learned, he failed at it.
He could bear humiliation. He was used to it.
But watching his friends get dragged into it? That was too much.
Suddenly, he remembered what Charlie once told him: "The tougher you are, the less people will mess with you."
At that moment, all the scorn and ridicule boiled in his chest. Neville's face turned crimson as he clenched his fists harder.
Malfoy was still jeering: "Why don't you ask your grandmother to pull you out of school already, "
Before he could finish, Neville exploded.
He let out a roar and charged at Malfoy, slamming his right fist directly into Draco's left eye.
Malfoy screamed and collapsed to the floor, rolling and clutching his face.
The entire Great Hall went dead silent.
Everyone stared in disbelief.
Was this the same Neville Longbottom they knew?
"Neville! That was brilliant!"
The Gryffindor table erupted in cheers.
Seamus Finnigan jumped onto the bench, fists pumping. Dean Thomas clapped so hard his palms turned red.
Among Gryffindors, if you got bullied and didn't fight back, they looked down on you.
But if you stood your ground, even if you lost, they'd respect you.
"Malfoy!"
The Slytherins were in an uproar. Their golden boy just got knocked down.
Pansy Parkinson shrieked and dashed over. The rest of the Slytherins started drawing their wands.
"Help Neville! Fight the Snakes!"
The Gryffindors weren't backing down. Everyone stood up at once.
Spells began flying in all directions.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
"Tarantallegra!"
"Densaugeo!"
Colorful jets of light crisscrossed the Great Hall. Tables and chairs were knocked over, crashing in every direction.
Students screamed. Spells exploded. It was chaos.
Charlie watched with great interest. Scenes like this didn't happen every day.
[His Majesty has incited an all-out brawl between the study mates. Wickedness overflowing. Tyrant Points +10]
Charlie blinked. Wait, what? Why is it always me? Why do I keep getting blamed?
He ignored the idiotic system and prepared to keep watching.
Then, whoosh!
A red spell beam zipped past his ear.
He turned sharply to see Ernie beside him flailing uncontrollably, legs jerking, arms waving like a puppet on strings.
"No, no! I don't want to dance! Help me!"
Ernie's face turned beet red, his voice cracking with panic.
Charlie's face darkened.
Who dared target the little brother who helped with his homework?
What'd he ever do to you?
Charlie calmly set down his utensils and drew his wand from his robe.
The ebony wand gleamed coldly under the candlelight.
"Finite Maxima."
An invisible wave of magic burst from the wand's tip, sweeping across the entire hall.
All the flying spells vanished instantly.
Ernie stopped his ridiculous dancing, and the other cursed students returned to normal.
Silence fell over the Great Hall.
Everyone turned to Charlie, faces filled with shock and disbelief.
Charlie slowly stood, raised his wand, and pointed it toward the ceiling.
His voice echoed through the quiet hall.
"Forest Emergence."
A wave of magic erupted.
The tables and chairs began trembling. Their wooden surfaces glowed green.
Then, they began to twist and grow.
Thick vines burst from chair legs, spiraling upward like snakes.
Chair arms elongated into flexible branches, lashing through the air.
In the blink of an eye, the Great Hall became a sea of writhing vines.
The brawling students were immediately ensnared, completely immobilized.
Malfoy dangled upside down, blood still dripping from his nose.
Pansy was wrapped tight like a dumpling, only her head sticking out.
Even Harry, Ron, and Hermione were caught, gently ensnared by the vines. They weren't hurt, but couldn't move.
Charlie put away his wand and sat back down, calmly slicing into his beef.
"When it's mealtime," he said, "keep it quiet."
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